Hundreds of their friends are destined to end up on the Christmas dinner table or sitting half-eaten in the fridge waiting to be put into a Boxing Day sandwich.

But a lucky few turkeys will spend Christmas Day enjoying the unexpected treat of being alive, thanks to the efforts of Rainham animal lover Amey Evans.

The owner of Happy Pants Ranch animal centre is launching her yearly appeal for people to sponsor a turkey - enabling her to buy a bird from a farm and give it a new life on her ranch.

Animal lover Amey Evans wants to save as many turkeys as possible this Christmas

“It’s that time of year again when the sanctuary is taking in turkeys and saving as many as possible from becoming Christmas dinner,” wrote Amey.

“So far I’ve rescued nine and I’m running a sponsor and name scheme where members of the public can pledge a donation to sponsor “their” turkey and give them a name.”

Speaking to the Medway Messenger she said her appeal had not lost momentum since she started it on Facebook in 2016.

“I’ll be getting another lot of turkeys soon,” she said.

“Last year I ended up taking in almost 20 turkeys.

“They stay with me. If people want to adopt and they have the facilities they can keep them but most can’t keep turkeys themselves. So most stay with me for life.”

People can pay £40 to sponsor a bronze stag turkey, £30 for a bronze hen, or £20 for a white turkey.

And Amey said the idea of saving birds was becoming increasingly accepted.

“People now expect it to happen,” she said. “Turkeys are becoming a bit more popular as pets because people already keep chickens.

“People were messaging in September asking if we we’re doing it this year.”

Search for The Happy Pants Ranch on Facebook to find out more, or visit the centre’s website happypants.co.uk.